Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Kerry ~ The Doll

Today I"m going to tell you about the doll in yesterday's post:

This is Kerry, an 18 inch doll, manufactured by the Ideal Toy Co. in 1970. If you grew up at that time, chances are you had one of the dolls. Their main feature was the ability to grow their hair. Notice how long her hair is in the picture above.
There is a knob on her back, which when turned, makes her hair grow shorter,

and to lengthen the hair, pull the ponytail to make it the length you want it to be.

This doll belongs to my youngest daughter.

The first doll in the series was Crissy, made in 1969, followed by her cousin Velvet (16 inches tall) and Kerry in 1970. The other two daughters had these dolls, and we have them also.

We made lots of pretty clothes for them; bell bottom pants, long skirts, pant suits, shawls, mostly made from double knits since that was the fabric of choice in those days. They were a lot easier to sew for than Barbie dolls because of their larger size. I think the red dress was the one Crissy was wearing when we got her, and Kerry is wearing her original outfit and shoes in the first photo.

So, do you remember these dolls? Did you have one? I'd like to know about them.

Charlotte







13 comments:

  1. I am amazed at those beautiful little outfits you made! And the quilt is beautiful, too! Everything has been kept in such great condition; you can tell the doll and clothes were special.

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  2. Crissy and Velvet...I remember them, but didn't remember Kerry. It just amazed me to see how good she still looks! They didn't have it as rough as the Barbies, huh. If I remember right, some of them look pretty rough!

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  3. I have always loved dolls..and eventho I have 3 daughters I am not familiar with these dolls. Your daughter sure treated her well, she still looks great!!

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  4. I remember these dolls. They were so pretty and looked like they would have been lots of fun. You've taken really great care of the doll and clothes, I admire the heart and care you put in to preserving such special things and precious memories. :)

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  5. Hmmmm. I don't remember them. My first born was a boy in 1971 and maybe they weren't popular 1976 when girl was born.

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  6. The outfits are beautiful. So talented you are. Do not remember the dolls. Have a good day...

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  7. I'm too old to have had those dolls, Charlotte!
    Mine were the Barbies, and my mom made most of her clothes because we really couldn't afford the store-bought ones.
    I was so excited when I'd come home from school to find that Mom had made a new outfit for Barbie!
    Thanks for the memory - and making me smile!

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  8. Although I graduated high school and was enterin' college in 1970 but my little sis had these dolls. I do remember 'em well.

    Yours are in fantastic condition.

    God bless and have a fantastic weekend sweetie!!! :o)

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  9. Yes, I remember these dolls! Weren't they great?

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  10. I had one, it was something I asked for one Christmas. It was my favored toy for some time, I loved the hair.

    My sister still has the first doll she ever gave me, I was probably 4 or 5. That poor doll saw better days but it sure shows that it was well loved.

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  11. I don't think I had one of those, Charlotte, but I do remember having a "Chatty Cathy" doll... but my favorite was a Holly Hobby cloth doll someone made for me.

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  12. I think I was just a bit too old for dolls when these came out. I seem to remember them, though. My nieces probably had them. I remember the name Crissy. I don't remember many, but I wish I had a few of my old dolls.I won a Little Miss Sunbeam doll from a coloring contest when I was in the 5th grade. I would love to still have her!

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  13. Dear Charlotte,
    I was looking back at some of your previous posts...especially the ones about dolls...and I stumbled upon this one. I have a "Beautiful Chrissy" doll...I got it as a Christmas present when I was little. My mom saved her...then made a wedding dress out of the same material that she made my gown out of...and surprised me at Christmas! What a treat! I did a post about her on my blog. I love to make dolls, too...right now I'm working on some rag dolls...just finished some felt dollhouse dolls. They are so fun to make!

    Have a lovely week!
    Laura

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